Methods and systems for integrating a hub motor with a vehicle

Abstract

Systems and methods described herein concern integrating a hub motor with a vehicle. One embodiment establishes a communication link between the hub motor and an electronic control unit (ECU) of the vehicle; transmits, from the hub motor to the ECU via the communication link, an identity of the hub motor; transmits, from the ECU to the hub motor via the communication link, an identity of the ECU and information regarding functionality supported by the ECU; reports, from the hub motor to the ECU via the communication link based at least in part on the identity of the ECU and the information regarding the functionality supported by the ECU, calibration data for the hub motor and information regarding the functionality supported by the hub motor; and adjusts, at the ECU, one or more characteristics of the vehicle in accordance with the calibration data and the functionality supported by the hub motor.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A method of integrating a hub motor with a vehicle, the method comprising:
 establishing a communication link between the hub motor and an electronic control unit (ECU) of the vehicle upon installation of the hub motor in the vehicle; 
 transmitting, from the hub motor to the ECU via the communication link, an identity of the hub motor; 
 transmitting, from the ECU to the hub motor via the communication link, an identity of the ECU and information regarding functionality supported by the ECU; 
 determining at the hub motor, based on the identity of the ECU and the information regarding the functionality supported by the ECU, calibration data for the hub motor; 
 reporting, from the hub motor to the ECU via the communication link, the calibration data for the hub motor and information regarding functionality supported by the hub motor; and 
 adjusting, at the ECU, one or more characteristics of the vehicle in accordance with the calibration data and the information regarding the functionality supported by the hub motor. 
 
     
     
       2. The method of  claim 1 , wherein the calibration data includes at least one of a drive-force map, a component limitation threshold, a rate filter, a motor torque and power limit map, and processing logic. 
     
     
       3. The method of  claim 1 , wherein the hub motor stores calibration data for a plurality of different vehicle types and configurations. 
     
     
       4. The method of  claim 1 , wherein the communication link includes a wireless communication link. 
     
     
       5. The method of  claim 1 , wherein the communication link includes at least one of a Controller Area Network (CAN) bus of the vehicle, an Ethernet link, and an optical-fiber link. 
     
     
       6. The method of  claim 1 , wherein the adjusting includes updating a vehicle configuration to all-wheel drive. 
     
     
       7. The method of  claim 1 , wherein the reported information regarding the functionality supported by the hub motor is based, at least in part, on operational performance data for the hub motor gathered while the hub motor was installed in a different vehicle. 
     
     
       8. A hub motor, comprising:
 one or more processors; and 
 a memory communicably coupled to the one or more processors and storing: 
 an identification module including instructions that when executed by the one or more processors cause the one or more processors to:
 identify the hub motor to an electronic control unit (ECU) of a vehicle upon installation of the hub motor in the vehicle; and 
 receive, from the ECU, an identity of the ECU and information regarding functionality supported by the ECU; and 
 
 a reporting module including instructions that when executed by the one or more processors cause the one or more processors to:
 determine, based on the identity of the ECU and the information regarding the functionality supported by the ECU, calibration data for the hub motor; and 
 report to the ECU the calibration data for the hub motor and information regarding functionality supported by the hub motor to enable the ECU to adjust one or more characteristics of the vehicle in accordance with the calibration data and the information regarding the functionality supported by the hub motor. 
 
 
     
     
       9. The hub motor of  claim 8 , wherein the calibration data includes at least one of a drive-force map, a component limitation threshold, a rate filter, a motor torque and power limit map, and processing logic. 
     
     
       10. The hub motor of  claim 8 , wherein the memory stores calibration data for a plurality of different vehicle types and configurations. 
     
     
       11. The hub motor of  claim 8 , wherein the identification module and the reporting module include instructions to communicate with the ECU via a communication link that includes a wireless communication link. 
     
     
       12. The hub motor of  claim 8 , wherein the identification module and the reporting module include instructions to communicate with the ECU via a communication link that includes at least one of a Controller Area Network (CAN) bus of the vehicle, an Ethernet link, and an optical-fiber link. 
     
     
       13. The hub motor of  claim 8 , wherein the reported information regarding the functionality supported by the hub motor is based, at least in part, on operational performance data for the hub motor gathered while the hub motor was installed in a different vehicle. 
     
     
       14. An electronic control unit (ECU) for a vehicle, the ECU comprising:
 one or more processors; and 
 a memory communicably coupled to the one or more processors and storing: 
 a component identification module including instructions that when executed by the one or more processors cause the one or more processors to:
 receive, from a hub motor upon installation of the hub motor in the vehicle, an identity of the hub motor; and 
 transmit, to the hub motor, an identity of the ECU and information regarding functionality supported by the ECU; and 
 
 a system configuration module including instructions that when executed by the one or more processors cause the one or more processors to:
 receive from the hub motor calibration data for the hub motor and information regarding functionality supported by the hub motor, wherein the hub motor determines the calibration data for the hub motor based on the identity of the ECU and the information regarding the functionality supported by the ECU; and 
 adjust one or more characteristics of the vehicle in accordance with the calibration data and the information regarding the functionality supported by the hub motor. 
 
 
     
     
       15. The ECU of  claim 14 , wherein the component identification module and the system configuration module include instructions to communicate with the hub motor via a communication link that includes a wireless communication link. 
     
     
       16. The ECU of  claim 14 , wherein the component identification module and the system configuration module include instructions to communicate with the hub motor via a communication link that includes at least one of a Controller Area Network (CAN) bus of the vehicle, an Ethernet link, and an optical-fiber link. 
     
     
       17. The ECU of  claim 14 , wherein the instructions in the system configuration module to adjust one or more characteristics of the vehicle in accordance with the calibration data and the information regarding the functionality supported by the hub motor include updating a vehicle configuration to all-wheel drive.